EASTHAM — The Wellfleet Breakers FC entered Sunday night’s regular-season finale against AC Independence knowing that they were facing an uphill battle.
ACI sat in second place in the eight-team Cape Cod Soccer League, 9 points ahead of the fourth-place Breakers, who had lost 3-0 in the teams’ only previous meeting this season. This time the Breakers fell 5-1 despite a heartfelt, gritty performance that entertained the tiny but vocal crowd under the lights at Nauset Regional High School.
The Breakers began on a high note, keeping ACI at bay and generating several notable offensive runs. They got on the board first with an impressive sequence that started with back Ethan Boyle advancing the ball through traffic to midfield before passing crisply to Provincetown’s Anthony Lovati on the left wing. Lovati, in turn, crossed the ball on a high arc to Chatham Headrick streaking toward the goal from the right. Headrick took the ball in stride and blew it past the ACI netminder for a 1-0 Breakers lead, 22 minutes in.
That lead would be short-lived, as Ramon Ramires, a former Breakers player, scored on a free kick from 20 yards out 3 minutes later. ACI scored 2 more goals in the waning minutes of the period and went into halftime with a 3-1 lead.
The Breakers played throughout as if they did not want to disappoint their longtime coach, Tony Conte. Although the game was out of reach midway through the second half, there were several “game-within-a-game” matchups that showcased the team’s grit and determination and provided more than enough entertainment to keep the fans involved until the final whistle.
An intriguing pairing pitted ACI’s young forward, Marcus Gomes, owner of a close-cropped, yellow-dyed haircut, against Wellfleet’s Jason Swaby. The lanky Gomes had the swagger of a player who exuded soccer excellence even standing alone before the game. When he touched the ball he became an instant blur of quickness and speed with slick ballhandling skills thrown into the mix. It was thrilling to watch, and he seemed, at first glance, to be nearly impossible to contain.
Swaby, however, did just that. The 47-year-old defender with a trim graying beard stayed step for step with Gomes throughout the night despite being what appeared to be at least twice the age of his opponent. Both of them obviously relished the challenge provided by the other as they smiled and patted each other on the back after a particularly compelling personal battle. At the end of the game, Swaby, who does not possess an extra ounce of fat, sat on the bench downing water and proudly telling his age to a questioner. Far from appearing tired, he looked like he could have played another 90 minutes. Middle-aged males looking for inspiration to get in shape need look no further than this man.
As if the Gomes-Swaby battle was not captivating enough, Conor Kenny kept the crowd engaged midway through the second half when he battled for a loose ball in front of ACI’s goal. After the ball bounded away, the ACI defender who was entangled with Kenny got much more physical than is the norm. Despite giving away several pounds and inches, Kenny was having none of it and let his displeasure be known. Officials rushed in and blew the play dead while separating him from several opponents. Kenny, an Orleans resident, was one of the players issued a yellow card despite being the apparent victim of an action that some felt might have warranted a red card if not an indictment for assault. He was still perturbed after the game, a sign of his focus and determination.
Finally, there was the “Flavio Augusto Salome De Franca versus Everyone” performance that was riveting, as the veteran goalie turned back multiple shots destined for the back of the net. It would not take a huge leap of the imagination to believe that ACI might have scored 10 goals were it not for De Franca’s acrobatics.
His most impressive stop came in the 68th minute on one of the rare occasions when Gomes managed to slip away from Swaby. The ACI forward gathered the ball on his right foot and let loose a rocket from roughly 15 yards away that was headed squarely for the top right corner of the goal. De Franca, springing from the goal’s midpoint, stretched to his full height and, with his body at a 45-degree angle to the ground, got to the corner an instant before the ball, deflecting it harmlessly away — to the delight of the crowd.
When the season began, Conte felt his team “would finish the season in the middle of the table and that is where we are.” His sights were realistically set since he had to incorporate at least a half dozen new players onto the team due to an eastward shift of the Breakers’ home field to Eastham and the subsequent desire of several members of last year’s team to play closer to their homes.
The diminutive, silver-maned Conte, 65, passionately urged his team on for the entire 90 minutes on Sunday, not pulling back even well after the result was no longer in doubt. The effort was not lost on his players or the fans. After ACI scored its final goal with 10 minutes left, one of his players on the pitch could be heard exhorting Conte to keep the words of encouragement coming. And after the game, several fans broke into cries of “Tony, Tony, Tony.” Despite the tough loss, there was not a hanging head to be seen, a silent testament to the coach’s upbeat approach.
The Breakers suffered their third consecutive defeat and ended the regular season at 5-7-2.
The Davis Cup playoffs begin on Sunday, August 3. The 6th-seeded Breakers will play 3rd seed Upper Cape at Cape Cod Academy at 5:30 p.m. The Nauset Storm, seeded first, will host 8th seed Napoli at Nauset High School at 7 p.m.
Editor’s note: Due to an editing error, an earlier version of this article, published in print on July 31, misstated the distance from which ACI’s Marcus Gomes launched his “rocket” shot. It was 15 yards, not 50 yards.
